There Is Still Hope
by trali13
Summary: Six years after the war. Six years after Fred died. George Weasley is a mess. Until one night a little girl rings the door bell, carrying nothing but a letter. This is the story of how Hope was found on George's doorstep. Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognise.
1. There Is No Hope After War

**Hello all! Fred and George Weasley are two of my favourite characters in the Harry Potter series. They are amazing and hilarious and helpful. Every time someone even mentions that Fred died, o just want to go over to JKR's house and shout at her. WHY DID SHE KILL FRED!?**

 **Anyway, this is a tribute to Fred and also George. Fred was George's best friends, brother and other half. Coming into terms with Fred's death would be traumatic for him. Out of all the Weasleys, George would have the hardest time. I don't think he'll ever fully get over Fred's death.**

 **Anyway, this story just popped into my mind. I hope you like it. It isn't going to be too long, less than twenty chapters I'm sure, but let's see how it goes.**

 **Thanks for checking this out. I got the same on Wattpad (and I've got a pic attached to every chapter there), so you can check that out. Onto the story.**

 _ **I solemnly swear I'm up to no good!**_

The cemetery was like any cemetery. Frightening, especially on a night like this. With no stars and no moon to light anything up. Everything was completely dark. Gravestones lined up, some new some old. A twenty six year old man knelt in front of a grave, like he did every single night since the Battle of Hogwarts.

He traced the words on the gravestone, only being able to see because of his wand light.

 _Fredrick Weasley_

 _Born 1 April 1978- Died 2 May 1998_

 _Beloved son, brother and prankster 'till the end._

George Weasley read the same inscription over and over for almost every night for the last six years. And he had to admit. His life was a mess. A complete and utter mess.

"I'm lost without you, Fred," George whispered to the grave.

George felt so helpless. He didn't feel whole. He sometimes thought that Fred was alive. He saw Fred until he realised it was a mirror. He thought he heard Fred until he realised it was his own voice. He knew, for a fact, that he would never get over Fred's death. And he so badly wanted to join him.

But he couldn't. He tried once, but his wretched family wouldn't let him. Mrs Weasley said she didn't want to loose another one. His siblings said they couldn't handle it again. Mr Weasley had kept quiet, but he had looked so sad that it was scary.

He was stuck. He wanted to join Fred, but his family would most definitely crumble. If he didn't join, he would never be able to live. Because George wasn't living. He heard Ron greet him at the joke shop, heard Angelina trying to talk to him, saw the customers coming and going, but he never acknowledged them. All he ever seemed to think about was Fred.

Everybody knew George was breaking. George knew it to. He tried his very best to put on a cheerful mask and crack jokes, just for his family. He knew his family was hurting as well, but not as much as him.

Fred had been his brother, his best friend, his other half. Why did Fred leave him? Why did it have to be Fred instead of himself? He asked himself the same question almost every single day, _Why not me? Why him instead of me?_

He sometimes felt that the others thought the same. For the first four years, Mrs Weasley called him Fred instead of George. Every time she did, she broke down crying, and sometimes, George joined her.

Sometimes, George thought that Fred would jump out from behind the gravestone, yell, "You dunderhead, it was just a joke!" and then hug him tight and never let him go.

George got up and waited, like he did every time, for it to happen. It never happened. It never would. He knew he waited all the same. Nothing happened this time around either. There was no hope.

George walked slowly back to his house. He lived separated from the rest of his family, but they visited him daily, to make sure he was alive. His house was close to the graveyard, not far from The Burrow either and wired to the joke shop. He went to the joke shop daily, to keep it going, Ron helped him as well.

He trudged home and sat down in front of the fireplace, a whiskey bottle in hand. He fought the urge to look at the mirror, once again hoping to see Fred. Finally he gave up and looked at the mirror, knowing it was stupid.

He only saw himself. Dark circles under his eyes, pale skin. Dead eyes stared back at him. The worst part, he still had one ear. He always looked to see if he had two ears. If he did, it would have been obvious it wasn't him. But it was. Fred was not there. He would never be.

Which is why he could never produce a patronus. Every happy memory George ever had involved Fred. How could he ever find a happy memory without thinking of Fred. George's heart hurt. He hated his life. He threw the whiskey bottle at the wall and collapsed into the sofa.

He started to sob. He wanted Fred, he wanted to hug him, to say at least goodbye. To tell him how much he loved him, how much he meant to him. How hard it was for him to go on.

George went to the fridge and got another whiskey. After Fred's death, he found that drinking helped a lot. He drowned his misery. He knew that when he woke up in the morning, he would get a hangover, and shout at Ron again. Ron would stay silent but watch him with a pained expression.

Then he would get home after work and drown his sorrows again. He would visit Fred's grave at night and get home and drink. Same thing everyday. He knew it was very unhealthy, but he had no idea what to do.

"Come back, please come back Fred," George said to no one, suppressing a sob.

George cried himself to sleep. Like he did everyday. His life was horrid, and George thought it would never be changing.


	2. Reunited With Her Beloved

**A/N: Because I'm bored, I'm sad, and I have no life, I present another chapter to you.**

* * *

Katie Brown, once known as Katie Bell, was in her death bed. Around her sat her husband, Hamish Brown, and her two children, Charlie Brown and Hope Brown. Hope had a large bruise on her face probably from when Hamish slapped her.*

Katie loved them all equally, but Hamish did not. Hamish loved his son Charlie, but hated Hope. Hope was not his daughter, and she was, in Hamish's eyes, a freak. In truth, Hope was magical, like Katie, but Katie never told Hamish.

There was one major thing that set Hope apart from the rest of the family. It was her hair. Her hair was fiery red, whereas the rest of the family had dark hair. It was obvious she wasn't Hamish's child. But that gave Hamish no right to hurt her!

Hope was born in January 31, 1999. She was born a little less than nine months after the Battle of Hogwarts, and exactly nine months after _that_ night. She was the daughter of the one and only Fred Weasley.

Katie had been devastated by Fred's death. After the Battle of Hogwarts ended and the war was won, Katie left the wizarding world, saying only good bye to her best friends and after attending Fred's funeral.

When she came to the muggle world, she had a hard time fitting in. After two months, she found out about Hope. After a bit of pondering, she knew there was no way Hope could be anybody but Fred's offspring. She took a long time but finally decided she wouldn't be telling anyone she knew. She was scared of the Weasleys reactions.

Before Hope was born, Katie had gone into a period of depression. She really had loved Fred a lot, and losing him was really hard on her. When Hope was born, Katie had took one look at her and loved her immediately. She was renewed hope, thus her name.

Then Katie met Hamish. She fell in love immediately, and they married. They had Charlie. Katie never saw the hate Hamish had for Hope. Not until one night.

Katie worked a night-shift in a twenty four hour restaurant as a waitress. That way, she could be home with the kids during the day. One night, there was fire at the restaurant. Nobody was hurt but the restaurant had completely burned down. All the employees went home early that night.

When Katie reached home, she heard muffled sobbing. "Please, I didn't mean it," Hope was sobbing.

Katie barged in quickly, and was horrified by the sight that met her. Hamish had Hope against the wall. Hope's face was bruised and there was a cut on her forehead that was bleeding.

"Hamish!" Katie had yelled.

Hope scrambled upstairs. Katie spent a lot of time yelling at Hamish. She threatened to leave him. Katie had seen bruises on Hope before, but whenever she asked, she was told she was clumsy. Katie hated herself. Hated that she never saw Hamish's hate after five years.

That had been a year ago, and Hamish kept his promise to not hurt Hope physically. At least, Katie thought so, but she knew that Hamish must have scared her. Hope was only five years old then. Katie couldn't believe Hamish hurt a child.

Katie didn't want to believe. She loved Hope. She loved Hamish too. She couldn't choose between the two. But Katie knew that Hope was not safe here. She never was. But Katie had managed to keep her safe so far.

Katie was now dying, and she had to keep her beautiful daughter safe. Even if it was the last thing she did. It _would_ be the last thing she did. And there was only one person who could keep her safe.

George Weasley was her last hope. He would keep her safe. After all, she was Fred's daughter. His twin's daughter.

"Hope," Katie turned to her daughter.

"Yes Mum?" The little six year old said.

"He won't. Listen, Hope. Remember that time I showed you that hospital? The one that is not that far?"

Hope nodded through her tears.

"Good. It's within walking distance, right? Do you think you can get there?"

Hope nodded again, remembering the hospital wasn't very far. Hope sometimes wondered why they never went to that hospital, preferring the one a little farther away, but Hope remembers there was something odd about that hospital. Something that seemed almost magical.

"Good girl. I know you can. You remember the directions I taught you?"

Hope remembered this as well. Her mother had told her that if Hope ever needed to get somewhere away from home, she should always go the same way to end up at the hospital. From there, Katie could pick her up.

"Left, straight, right, straight, and one last left," Hope recited.

"That's my good girl," Katie said struggling to smile. "Take this and give it to one of the heal-doctors there,"

"He won't. Listen, Hope. Remember that time I showed you that hospital? The one that is not that far?"

Hope nodded through her tears.

"Good. It's within walking distance, right? Do you think you can get there?"

Hope nodded again, remembering the hospital wasn't very far. Hope sometimes wondered why they never went to that hospital, preferring the one a little farther away, but Hope remembers there was something odd about that hospital. Something that seemed almost magical.

"Good girl. I know you can. You remember the directions I taught you?"

Hope remembered this as well. Her mother had told her that if Hope ever needed to get somewhere away from home, she should always go the same way to end up at the hospital. From there, Katie could pick her up.

"Left, straight, right, straight, and one last left," Hope recited.

"That's my good girl," Katie said struggling to smile. "Take this and give it to one of the heal-doctors there," Katie whispered, "Remember one thing; have hope,"

Hope released her and muffled a sob, trying to stay strong for her mum. Katie smiled at her then at Hamish and Charlie.

Katie couldn't keep her eyes open anymore. She closed her eyes. As she breathed her last breath, she thought, _At least I will be reunited with Fred._

* * *

 ***Anyone else see that I used Charlie Brown?**

 **A/N: So I realised that there were many flaws in this story. Hopefully I fixed some. Thank you so much** **GraysonSteele for you help!**


	3. Escape

George, with great difficulty, got himself of the couch and started to clean up the glass from the whiskey bottle he broke the night before. He then made himself a breakfast and left for his shop. Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes.

It was, as usual, completely cheery and happy. Before Fred died, nothing was _too_ funny. But the shop was _unbearably_ funny. It was _annoying._ It was doing nothing good for his headache, and right now he desperately wished he had a Hangover Potion.

"Hey George," Ron said cheerfully.

"Hello Ron," George said dully.

Ron's face fell. Ron shook his head slightly and walked away. Ron hated this George, the one who never laughed, who barely smiled, and who was wasting away, drinking and starving. The one who didn't call "Ronnikins" and the one who didn't tease Percy anymore. Everyone misses that George - even Percy.

George saw Ron's smile fall but said nothing. He was too tired to care. He went on with the day like he always day. Helping customers, talking to Ron occasionally.

At lunch, Angelina came by.

"Hi George," Angelina said.

"Hello Angelina," George said.

Angelina, unlike Ron, didn't let his unenthusiastic reply let her down. Instead she said, just as cheerfully as she started, "So how's the shop going?"

"Fine," George replied without enthusiasm.

"Great, so do you have anything important to do or..."

George cut of Angelina, "Sorry, the shop is busy today,"

Angelina nodded at the blunt lie, "Alright, see you,"

George watched her go and sighed. Angelina was a great person, and even after six years, she never pushed him. She was always there for him, but George didn't think he could really get into a relationship right now.

Angelina came by every day to see him. She tried to take him to lunch everyday. He refused most days. He went some days when he was feeling a little up. Angelina was really an amazing person and made George almost smile.

As Ron and George cleaned up the shop, George got a very pleasant feeling. Like something good was going to happen that day.

* * *

Hope sat in her room, silent tears running down her face. Her mothers funeral was going on right now but she didn't go. She couldn't handle it. It had only been a week, and Hope was yet to come in terms with the true meaning of her mothers death.

All her life, he mum was the only person who loved her and kept her safe. Hamish hated her, and Charlie followed Hamish's example, though Charlie, being younger than her, couldn't do much. At school, she was a freak because weird things kept happening to her. Like the one time when the boy who was bullying Hope accidentally burnt his books. A lot of children, including Hope, saw the books burn itself. And then there was the other time when the librarians finger got stuck to her lips because she had been telling Hope to keep quiet.

Hope did not know why these freakish things kept happening to her. Hamish said it was because she was a mistake. When Hope had asked her mum, she told Hope that it was because she was was special. Hope's mum never failed to tell Hope that she loved her.

Now she was gone, and Hope was all alone.

She looked at the letter her mum had given her. It was addressed to a person named Alica. She had to go to that hospital that her mum had once taken her. She remembered that day very well.

Hope had been very sick that day, and the doctors could not understand what disease she had gotten. As Hope got worse, Katie took her down the street, not very far from their house. At first, Hope saw nothing, but then, a white hospital appeared and Hope was sure it hadn't been there before.

Katie had taken Hope inside and spoke to one of the doctors there. The doctor gave Katie a green vial of some sort of liquid and told Katie that Hope was to drink it every day for the next seven days.

Seven days later, Hope was better and healed. It was almost as if it had been magic!

Shaking herself out of memories. It was almost four, meaning that the funeral was over. Wiping her eyes, Hope grabbed a knapsack and stuffed some clothes, her favourite book, and a photo of her _real_ parents. She stared at her dad for a while, remembering that he had a twin brother, as Katie had let slip once. She wondered where he was and how he was doing.

She put the picture in the bag and grabbed the letter. She quietly went downstairs, careful not to make a single sound. She even held her breath, scared Hamish would jump out of the corner and stop her from leaving.

She felt tears sting her eyes again, fear taking over slowly. The door was in sight and she swore she heard Hamish's thundering steps and booming voice. She decided to make a break for it.

"Where do you think your going?" Hamish thundered.

Hamish grabbed Hopes bag. The bag ripped and everything Hope packed fell to the floor. Hope saw the picture laying close by her feet. She ducked down and grabbed it before turning and running.

Hope ran out of the house, never looking back. All she had with her was the letter and the photo.

* * *

 **A/N, Thank you again, GraysonSteele  
**


	4. From Beyond the Grave

George was drinking again. Just another day. In a few moment, he would be visiting Fred's grave. Whenever he was about to visit Fred's grave, he never drank to much. Just a shot. He didn't want to be drunk when he talked to Fred.

George set out to the graveyard. He remembered the pleasant feeling he had gotten today and wondered if today was the day Fred would tell him it was all a prank. He would jump out and they would laugh together until George found a way to get back at him.

George scoffed at the idea. As if that could happen. It was just false hope. _It would be fun,_ George thought.

He remembered all those times when he had to work _against_ his twin. Usually, they were always together to create chaos. But if Fred or George pranked the other, all hell would break loose. It had happened once and no one had ever seen Mrs Weasley so angry. Actually no one had ever seen Ginny that angry, and everyone knew not to anger Ginny. Living with six brothers had made Ginny and absolute monster. An adorable monster at that.

George didn't know that he had reached Fred's grave all ready. "Remember that Fred?"

George waited for Fred to reply, "How could I forget, George?" But it didn't come.

George didn't realise he was grinning until the grin fell from his face. He wanted those days back so bad. He wanted more of them. He wanted to be the carefree boy he was when he was around Fred. He wanted Fred.

Suddenly, he just wanted to kill that bastard, Voldemort. Too bad Harry already killed him. George wanted to dig him out of his grave and kill him all over again. He felt so angry that he wanted to punch something. He resorted to punching the ground.

Once he killed the ground, he collapsed on his knees again. His heart felt so painful. It felt like it had been ripped out of his chest and broken. Smashed to pieces over and over again. His heart throbbed. George brought up his hand and clutched his chest. It hurt so bad!

George was breaking down completely on the inside. He felt as though he had no hope. He waited again for Fred to jump out from behind the grave but he didn't.

"Please, Fred, give me something to hold on to!" George cried out into the darkness.

Because George was sobbing beside Fred's grave, he didn't know that Fred had sent him hope from beyond the grave.

* * *

Hope remembered the directions well. Left, straight, right, straight, and one last left. She remembered her mum taking her to the Hospital, pointing out different landmarks that could help Hope get there.

She remembers the kind lady at the front desk named Alica. She was the one the letter was addressed to, surely. Hope feels a little hopeful as she walks through the front doors of the Hospital and seeing Alica at the front desk. Perhaps, things won't be so bleak after all.

* * *

 **A/N Just so you know, this isn't Alica from the Gryffindor quidditch team. Also, sorry for the wait and short chapter.  
**


	5. The Letter

Alicia Pennyworth had worked in St. Mungo's for quite a few years but never had she had a child called Hope stroll up to her so casually and tell her that Hope needed help because her mother died.

Then again, Alicia knew Hope had always been an odd child.

She re-read the letter and hoped that her old friend Katie - bless her soul - knew what she was doing.

* * *

 _Dear George,_

 _If you're reading this then I'm dead. Don't worry, I'm making sure Fred isn't getting into_ too _much trouble._

 _Before I leave, I want to ask you a favour. Please, take care of Hope. You have a good reason to. She if Fred's daughter. I'm not lying and this is not a joke. She is really Fred's and my daughter. Please, please take care of her._

 _It happened a few days before the Battle of Hogwarts. He was out late that night and then I found him. After the war ended, I was devastated. After Fred's funeral, I fled to the muggle world, only saying goodbye to Alica and Angelina. I didn't know about Hope until later._

 _Then I married a man named Hamish Brown. We had a son, Charlie. I made a mistake in loving him. One night, I came home early, because I work nigh shifts at a muggle restaurant, and I found that Hamish had Hope against the wall, and Hope was crying. She was bleeding too._

 _That night, Hamish promised he'd never hurt her, but I have a feeling that he never kept the promise. I found Hope crying multiple time and nursing bruises. I loved Hamish, and I was blinded by that love. I really did think that Hamish would not hurt her._

 _Last year, the doctors told me I had cancer. I went to St Mungo's but found out that I was too far gone for even magical healing. I was going to die. I wasn't completely sad since, on the bright side, I'd be seeing Fred again._

 _Truth is, the only thing I was worried about was Hope. Hope was not safe with Hamish, she never was. I hope she will be safe with you._ _I know you might hate me for never telling you or your family, but honestly, I didn't want to go back to the wizarding world. It took everything from me._

 _My mother was muggle, as you know, and I grew up partially in the muggle world. I love that world just as much as I love mine. Then, the war came. I watched as both my parents were murdered in front of my eyes and I was so powerless to stop. I witnessed so many horrors of the wizarding world and it was just too much to bare. I had to live. I needed a restart button.  
_

 _Hope doesn't know that she's magical. I think you'll have fun teaching that to her. She's honestly an amazing girl. Please take care of her. I love her, and I know you will too._

 _Tell Angelina I said goodbye, I know you two would be great together._  
 _Please take care of Hope, for at least Fred,_  
 _Katie_

George read and reread the letter multiple times. Hope. Fred's daughter Hope.

"Are you sure?" George asked the healer - Alicia.

Alicia nodded and said, "If you like, I can do a test,"

George nodded, his throat dry. Hope looked at George nervously before holding out her hand as Alicia requested. Alicia took a drop of blood before performing a spell, making Hope stare in wonder as another bit of magic was performed in front of her.

Silver words formed. It spelled:

 _Katie Bell Brown and Fredrick Weasley._

George just couldn't believe it. Fred had a daughter! But he couldn't take care of her. George was a mess. He was getting drunk every night. He was only just barely making it through the day. He couldn't take care of a child! He didn't know the first thing about parenting!

Hope wasn't treated right at home. At least not by Hope's stepfather. George wondered how far Hamish had gone and felt immense hatred for the man. How could someone hurt a little six year old child like that! No wonder Hope had been scared.

George looked at Hope incredulously. But George couldn't take care of the child. What if he accidentally hurt her? Maybe Bill, Charlie or Percy could do it. Even Ron and Ginny could do it. They were all parents. But George had no idea on how to take care of himself, how was he going to take care of a child?

He couldn't. But...

He was a mess. But...

He didn't have the skills. But...

He just couldn't do it. But...

But she was Fred's daughter.

* * *

 **A/N. Sorry for the late update and boring chapter. Writers block is a cruel thing. Also, thank you for reading and reviewing.**


	6. In Which Hope is a Witch

Hope woke up in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room. She looked around trying to figure out where she was. Then she remembered the events from the night before. She was sleeping in a bed at Uncle George's house.

Hope looked out the window. It was still dark out. Hope lay down in the bed again and tried in vain to go back to sleep. Instead, she started thinking about her life.

She missed her mummy so much. She was always there for her, to save her and to care for her. Now she was gone and Hope suddenly felt very alone.

Hope didn't know what to think about her Uncle George. He seemed really nice. She didn't shout at her yet. Maybe he was still in shock.

Hope was scared. What if Uncle George threw her out because of her freakishness? What if Hope had to go back to Hamish because Uncle George couldn't be bothered with a child?

Hope didn't want to go back. She would just have to hide her freakishness. Her mum had been the only one who had never said a word about her freakishness except that it made Hope special. What if Uncle George was like the rest. What if they thought she was a monster?

A worse thought came to her mind. What if Uncle George was like Hamish? Maybe, when he found out about Hope's freakishness, he would hurt her like Hamish did. Maybe he would call he a good-for-nothing freak.

Hope sniffled. She wanted her mum more than ever now. It was so unfair. Why did her mum have to leave her? Hope had to hold in another sob. Why couldn't she be normal? Why did she have to be an orphan with a mean stepfather and an Uncle she knew nothing of?

Why couldn't Hope just feel loved again?

* * *

The next morning, George woke up without a headache from a hangover. He was wondering why when he remembered Hope. The night before, he thought of Hope so much that he didn't even drink. That was a good thing, right? Maybe Hope was having a huge impact on George's life already.

George made breakfast and went upstairs to call Hope down. When George reached her bed he was surprised to see her pillow wet and George wondered if she had cried herself to sleep.

"Hope. Hope come on, you've got to get up," George shook her gently.

Hope opened her eyes and looked up at George. George looked back at her and absolutely melted inside. He didn't have time to ponder on the fact because Hope quickly scrambled out of bed and ran into the bathroom. She was still scared of George.

George sighed, wondering what to do next. He decided to talk to Ron through floo.

"Hey Ron,"

"What's up George?" Ron said cheerfully.

"Er...I'm not coming to work today," George said.

"Why?" Ron sounded worried.

"Don't worry Ron, I'll tell you later," George said before taking his head out of the fireplace.

When George turned around Hope was gaping at the fireplace. George just had to chuckle softly at her expression. Hope looked at him disbelievingly.

"Ho...Wha...The fire..." Hope stammered.

George watched her amused. Hope suddenly remembered something and bowed her head and stopped asking questions. "S-sorr-sorry,,"

George's smile fell. He wanted to kill Hamish again. He said, "No problem kid, come on, breakfast. And then I'll explain some things,"

Hope nodded. George watched her eat for sometime before he asked, "So tell me Hope, have you ever done things that you can't explain,"

Hope looked up at him. She nodded hesitantly, it's better to tell the truth than lie and have him find out later.

"That's because you are a witch. You saw me talking to Ron in the fireplace because I am a wizard,"

Hope looked at him wide eyed and then said, "But magic isn't real,"

"Now who told you that?" George raised an eyebrow.

"Um...Hamish," Hope said.

"Well Hamish," George levitated some pumpkin juice onto the table, "was wrong, wasn't he,"

Hope giggled as the juice floated over to her. George thought it was an angelic sound. He decided he wanted to hear more.

"Finish your breakfast, all right?" George told her.

He headed over to the floo, _Time to introduce her to the family,_ George thought. Mrs Weasley answered the floo.

"Hey mum!" George said.

"George, what's wrong?" Mrs Weasley asked. George never called, it was usually Mrs Weasley who called.

"Is dad home?" George asked.

"Yes, he is, do you want me to call him?" Mrs Weasley asked.

"No, that's okay. Can I come through? I have someone special for you to meet," George said, a small smile on his lips.

Mrs Weasley stared a little. Did George just smile? This someone special must be very special! "Of course you can come!"

"Great, I'll be there in thirty minutes,"

* * *

 **Super sorry everyone. I just realised I posted the wrong chapter!  
**


	7. The Burrow

"Arthur! George! It's George!" Mrs Weasley shouted.

"What about George? Is he alright?" Mr Weasley asked.

"Better than alright! He's coming through in thirty minutes! He said he had someone special for us to meet! And he smiled!" Mrs Weasley exclaimed.

"He smiled!" Mr Weasley said, "Quick, we've got to get this place cleaned up!"

Mr and Mrs Weasley were ecstatic! Their George had smiled for the first time in six years! Sure, it was a tiny smile, but it was the beginning. Whoever had made George smile, they were absolutely sure they would do everything in their power to make sure he or she stayed with George. Whether George like it or not.

* * *

"Okay Hope. This is a floo. Not the same thing as the past tense of fly. It's spelt F-L-O-O," George told Hope.

Hope nodded and looked frightened.

"Now, to use the fireplace, you need to be connected to the Floo Network, which I am. All you have to do is step into the fire, throw the floo powder in, and say where you want to go very, _very_ clearly," George smiled a little as he remembered the first time Harry went through the floo.

Hope looked at the fireplace. _What if I get burned? I'm was scared. Couldn't Uncle George take me?_ She wanted to ask but was too scared to.

"Don't worry Hope, we are going to go together. Come on," George stepped into the fireplace. Hope hesitated before following behind. Hope wondered where she was going. George wouldn't take her back to Hamish would he?

"The Burrow!" George said loudly and clearly.

Floo-ing, Hope decided, was an unpleasant sensation. Hope was thrown out of the fireplace and she fell into a motherly lady.

"Er...Hello," Hope said shyly.

"Mum, Dad, this is Hope. Hope, these are your grandparents," George said.

"Grandparents!" Mrs Weasley gasped, "Geroge! Who..."

"Katie and" George got prepared for a breakdown, "Fred,"

Mrs Weasley paled and Mr Weasleys smile dropped. Hope was worried that she did something wrong and glanced at George. George was looking at his parents sadly. Hope looked back at her grandparents. Her grandmother was crying now.

"Did I do something wrong?" Hope asked George so quietly that he almost missed it. George felt very proud that Hope had manged to ask that question. She seemed to have a difficulty asking questions.

"No, they just miss your father," George quickly wiped his eyes, "and I do to,"

After Mrs Weasley composed herself, George handed her the letter. While Mr and Mrs Weasley read the letter, George led Hope around the house. Finally they reached his and Fred's old room.

"This used to be me and your father's room," George said, opening the door.

Everything in the room was exactly where it had been six years ago, except it was all layered with dust. After Fred died, George didn't come into the room ever again. No one did. It had been left alone. Suddenly, George felt a lump in his throat. Hope looked like she was in a trance. George couldn't stay here anymore. Too many memories.

George pulled Hope away. Hope looked like she was about to protest but then she closed her mouth. She didn't want to get into trouble with her Uncle George or her grandfather. They were both very big men and could probably hit hard.

"George, Hope, I called the rest of the Weasleys. They are all coming for lunch. Is that okay?"

George nodded, as did Hope. Mrs Weasley then spoke up again, he eyes still red from crying, "Oh, and Fleur's on the way now. She's coming with the kids and Teddy,"

George nodded again and Hope looked intrigued. Suddenly, the floo flared and in walked Fleur with four kids in tow. The youngest was Louis, only two years old. Next came Dominique who was three years old, then was Victoire five years old. Teddy was the oldest and was seven years old.

Fleur hugged Mrs Weasley and smiled in greeting to George and Mr Weasley. Then she bent down so she eye level with Hope and said, "'Ello, you must be Hope. I am your Aunt Fleur,"

Hope smiled up shyly at Fleur. Fleur smiled back. Fleur spoke in a very light French accent, loosing most of her old accent from living in England for so long. Fleur led the kids away so that the adults could talk. Hope had made friends with Teddy and Victoire almost at once.

George watched them go and finally blurted out something he had been meaning to tell his parents all along, "I can't take care of her,"


	8. Weasleys

"What do you mean you can't take care of her?!" Mrs Weasley exclaimed.

"I mean, come on mum. Look at me! I'm a mess. I can't take care of myself, let alone take care of a child!" George said.

"We'll help you," Mr Weasley said.

"But what if I hurt her?" George asked stubbornly.

"George, yo two can help each other," Mr Weasley said.

"Yes, Hope just lost her mother. She needs someone she can trust," Mrs Weasley said.

"She could learn to trust you or anyone else she's with," George said.

"Of course she could. But think about Fred. Fred would have wanted you to take care of her. Plus anyway, you know you like her too," Mr Weasley said.

George was about to protest but she paused. He did like her. "There's nothing I can say to change your mind is there?"

"There is. But we'd prefer it if you didn't," Mrs Weasley said, smiling.

George sighed, "I don't know the first thing about parenting,"

"Nor did we when Bill was born. But we will help you," Mrs Weasley said.

"And if I fail?" George asked.

"You won't," Mrs Weasley said firmly.

After a few minutes of silence, Mr Weasley said, "It's nearly noon dear, everyone will be arriving soon,"

Mrs Weasley got up and instructed Fleur, George and the children to wait in front of the fire to greet the rest of the family.

George took Hope aside and told her, "Let me warn you now. We have a very big family,"

Hope nodded, wondering exactly how big the family really was. She didn't have to wait very long because the floo flared and in walked Bill. After him, Ron came in, followed closely by Hermione. Next came Ginny who's stomach was swollen, followed by Harry.

They all introduced themselves to Hope. Hope smiled up at them. They waited a little while for Percy, Audrey, Molly and Lucy to all come through. Hope really like them all. They were all very friendly.

"Charlie couldn't make it, he's still in Romania," Mrs Weasley told them at lunch.

At lunch, everybody started to get to know Hope. They all asked he questions and she answered them best they could.

"So have you ever played Quidditch?" Ron asked. It was the very first question that included magic in it.

Hope didn't know what to answer but George did, "She didn't know magic till this morning actually. So no,"

That's how, for the rest of lunch, Hope found herself asking questions about Quidditch and Harry, Ron and George started explaining about it.

 **A/N, sorry for the lame chapter...**


	9. Joke Shop

After lunch, George and Ron took Hope to the joke shop. All the Weasleys were awful sad to see Hope go. As Hope entered the shop, her eyes widened in amazement.

"This, dear Hope, was your father's and my idea," Geroge said.

"They were the greatest pranksters Hogwarts ever saw," Ron told her.

Hope looked around in wonder at the shop, trying to take everything in at once. There were so many things and everything was do magical!

"Ron, can you look after the shop? I need to get Hope all the necessities," George asked Ron.

"'Course," Ron said.

George took Hope out of the shop, promising they would come back later. Geroge had to walk slowly because Hope stopped to look at everything magical. To George it was nothing, but to Hope, it was a whole new world.

"George?" A female asked from behind him.

Geroge turned around to see Angelina, "Oh, Hi,"

"Hi. Who's this?" Angelina smiled at Hope, who returned a small, hesitant smile

"This is Fred and Katie's daughter, Hope," George said.

Angelina gaped at Geroge and Geroge had to give a small smile at that, "Come on, I need to buy her some things, I'll explain as we walk,"

So Geroge did. George told Angelina everything from the moment George saw Hope to coming to Diagon Alley. Angelina brushed away some stray tears when she heard Katie died.

As Hope was standing and getting measured, George told Katie what he'd left out, "Katie's husband Hamish didn't treat her right. Katie came one night early and saw Hamish had Hope up against the wall and she was bleeding. I think this Hamish was abusive,

Angelina gasped, "Oh, the poor girl! She's only six!"

Geroge was about to say more when Hope was done. George and Angelina both smiled at her sadly and then led her to more stores. Angelina came with them and helped out with things that boys wouldn't understand.

George, Angelina and Hope returned together to the joke shop. Ron greeted them happily. Ron and George showed Angelina and Hope around the joke shop.

Later, George said goodbye to Angelina, who had to go home, and decided to head home himself. He said goodbye to Ron and took Hope home with him.

Hope had just had the most fun of her life and couldn't wait for more. She really loved the wizarding world but wondered why they were so old fashioned compared to the muggles.

George took Hope to her room and asked her, "What colour do you want it to be,"

Hope looked surprised, wondering, and then said, "Red, please,"

Geroge laughed, "Just like your parents, a Gryffindor!"

Hope didn't know what a "Gryffindor" was, but took it as a compliment. She was so very curious and blurted out, "What's that?"

She wasn't supposed to ask Hamish any question and Hope wondered if it was he same with George. Just in case, "Sorry, sorry, I won't ask again,"

George knelt down so he could look Hope in the eye, "Hope, you can ask questions here, I don't mind. You're curious, and that's okay,"

Hope was startled. _Uncle George is too nice._ Hope nodded.

George looked a little pleased with himself and said, "To answer your question, Gryffindor is one of the houses at Hogwarts, which is a school for magical kids, which you'll at end when you're eleven, there are four houses..."

George went into an explanation about then houses of Hogwarts, making sure to throw in a little bit of prejudice, but not too much. Hope listened in rapt attention, intrigued by all four houses. She caught that Slytherin was quite an awful house and Gryffindor was the best.

"To get into one of the houses, you must do a test. All first years must line up and fight a fully grown mountain troll," Geroge finished, remembering what he and Fred told Ron when he was about to attend.

Hope looked horrified. Geroge laughed and said, "I'm kidding, all you have to do is put on a hat, and it will sort you. The hats magical and is very smart, albeit snide,"

Hope looked somewhat relived. George put her in bed, which was now like the Gryffindor beds at Hogwarts, and bid her goodnight.

Before he left, Hope asked Geroge, "Could you tell me a story about dad?"

Geroge looked at her for a long time. He became chocked up with emotions. Finally, he took a shaky breath.

Hope was now getting a little scared. Had she said something wrong? Was she suddenly not meant to ask questions?

Finally, Geroge said, "Maybe later," and left it at that.

Hope watched him go, scared she had hurt George's feelings. She didn't want to hurt the man who was so very nice to her. That night, Hope had trouble sleeping.


	10. The Game

George woke up to hear crying coming from Hope's room. Once again, lucky he had woken up from a nightmare about Fred.

George went up to Hope's room and saw the girl was awake, sitting on her bed, sobbing silently into her pillow. George walked over to her and sat down next to her on the bed. Hope looked up at George and whimpered a little.

"Hope, what's wrong," George asked.

Hope said nothing so George asked, "Was it a nightmare?"

Hope nodded. She had stopped crying now, but looked frightened.

"What was it about?" George asked.

"Hamish," Hope whispered.

George clenched his teeth in anger. He was going to kill the man. He quickly returned to a calm state and said,

"Don't worry about him any longer. He will never hurt you again," George hugged Hope gently.

Hope tensed when George put his arms around her. Then she relaxed, feeling safe like she did when her mum hugged her.

"Do you want to go back to sleep?" George asked.

Hope nodded. "Can you stay?" She asked quietly in a small voice.

George smiled at her and conjured up a chair and sat beside her bed. Hope didn't take long to fall asleep. When she did, George went downstairs and started pacing.

Hamish. The excuse of a man needed to be punished. How could Katie have married such a monster? How far had he gone? George wanted answers!

By the time morning was upon them, George had a plan. He woke Hope up and took her to the Burrow after breakfast. Luckily, Ron _ordered_ him to take a few days of to get accustomed to having Hope around.

"Oh, hello George dear," Mrs Weasley said.

"Hi mum. Could you take care of Hope for today? I got some business to attend to," George told her.

"What business?" Mrs Weasley asked.

George covered Hope's wears and whispered, "The game is called 'Kill Hamish'"

"George!" Mrs Weasley said, horrified.

"What was that about?" Hope asked innocently.

"Nothing," George and Mrs Weasley said together.

"Don't worry, mum, I'm just going to ask some questions. I won't hurt him physically," George left the _unless necessary_ out.

George turned to Hope, "Hope, can you stay with you grandma for awhile? I need to attend to some business,"

Hope looked at Mrs Weasley and nodded. She didn't mind Mrs Weasley, she was a little loud, but very nice, and her food was great.

"George, don't do anything stupid!" Mrs Weasleys shouted after him.

"When have I ever done anything stupid?" George asked before he was engulfed in flames.

After some digging, because George didn't want to ask Hope, George found Hamish Brown's address. George grinned, grabbed some things and apparated in front of his house.

George was happy that no one was out, or else he would have violated the whole muggles-can't-see-magical-junk rule. George knocked on the door politely.

"Hello, how may I help you?" A man with dark hair and brown eyes asked at the door.

"I'm here to talk about your wife, Katie, and your stepdaughter, Hope," George said.

"Do I know- it's you!" Hamish seemed to recognise him, "You left Katie alone for years and now you come? Well your freakish daughter ran away-"

"No, I am not Hope's father, I'm her Uncle. Fred was my twin, and I'm here to talk about your treatment with Hope," George said calmly, even though he wanted to scream at the man for calling Hope a "freak".

George looked around and said, "Perhaps we should take this inside,"

Hamish reluctantly let the man in. George looked around to see pictures of Katie, Hamish, Charlie and Hope lined up on the walls. It suddenly reminded George of the Dursleys, who were Harry's relatives. But at least Hope had Katie, and pictures of her on the wall. Harry had had no one.

George turned to Hamish and talked. Behind his back, he took out his wand. He magically spelled Veritaserum into Hamish's stomach.

"I'm going to ask some questions and you're going to answer truthfully, okay?"

"Yes," Hamish said before he could stop himself.

"Did you abuse Hope?"

"The freak deserved it,"

"Why?"

"Because she was not my child, and she was also an illegitimate child, and she was different"

"How much did you hurt her?"

"I slapped her around a bit, banged her against the walls, and threw things at her. After Katie found out, I started kicking and punching Not often though"

"Why did Katie not find out?"

"I made the freak promise not to tell. I told her if she told Katie, I'd hurt Katie too. I also hit her in places which would be covered up with clothes,"

"Would you have hurt Katie?" So far, George was getting sick.

"If I had to,"

George couldn't stop himself. He brought up his fist and punched he man. A satisfactory _crac_ k sounded as George broke his nose.

"You sick, vile, creature!" He shouted.

George took a few deep breaths and said, "Will you hurt your son?"

"Never,"

"Did your son hurt Hope,"

"Not physically, but he never forgot to rub it in her face that I like him more than her,"

George was glad he brought some sweets along with some pranks. George _obliviated_ the man's memory and put him to sleep. He then payed him down on the couch.

"Who are you?" A boy, who was the exact replica of his father, asked from he doorway.

"I am a friend of your mum's. Or was," George said.

Charlie nodded. He looked at his dad then at George and left. Odd kid.

George went around the house, putting up some stuff. He found Charlie in what was possibly his room. He was laying in bed, staring at a computer screen.

"Do you miss your mum?" George asked him.

"Yes," Charlie said.

"And your sister?"

"The freak's not my sister," Charlie said "freak" with venom.

George took out two sweets and gave it to Charlie. Charlie accepted it graciously but didn't eat it. _Aw,_ _I_ _was hoping for a show like Dudley._

After George left, he grinned maniacally. Let the games begin **.**

* * *

 **Too overboard? Too unrealistic? Too out of place? Yeah, I thought so too, but I like it so *shrug*.**


	11. Playing the Game

When Hamish woke up again, he didn't remember a thing. All he remembered was the doorbell ringing and falling asleep. He went up to Charlies room to see him on the computer again. He figured not to disturb him.

Unknown to him, coming into Charlie's room was a mistake. It triggered the "Game" that George set up.

Hamish started down the stairs again, but he slipped down the stairs instead. He fell flat on his bottom, confused. He looked up at the stairs and saw that it wasn't different at all.

He tried to step onto the first step and saw that his feet went right through. "I must still be sleeping," Hamish muttered.

Hamish made his way to the couch. When he say down, he saw Hope appear beside him, "Hi Hamish," she said.

Hamish jumped. When did she get there. Instead of pondering, he got up and yelled at her.

"You little ungrateful freak! How dare you step foot in this house again! You think you can run away and come back without punishment? You think I'm just going to let you in-"

Hamish continued yelling. A few miles away, George was watching this with a mischievous smile.

Hamish stopped yelling and saw that the girl had not cowered away or shown any reaction. Hamish swung at her. His fist connected with her face, and something broke.

But it wasn't her face that broke, it was Hamish's fist. Hamish felt like he had just hit a brick wall. "Wha-" he said stupidly.

"Why did you not love me?" Hope asked in a really small voice.

"Why?" Hope asked again when Hamish didn't answer.

Hamish wasn't listening, he was nursing his now very painful hand. _What is going on here!_

"Why? Why? WHY?" Hope's voice got higher and higher until she was finally screeching.

Hope punched Hamish, and suddenly Hamish felt as though he had been pinched and kicked a hundred times over.

George grinned. By now, the idiot must have realised it really wasn't Hope. Now all he had to do was run into he basement.

Hamish was getting scared and he knew something was very wrong. He ran and tried to get up the stairs, not realising there were no stairs.

Hamish tripped and fell right through the stairs. Hamish ended up in the basement. But there was only one change. His worst fear was standing right before him.

George who was watching leaned forward. Of course, he wouldn't use a _real_ boggart on Hamish, it was a sort of toy. It would show his worst fear, but it would only stay for thirty seconds before dissolving. It would also not be able to hurt anybody.

George looked at the man who was Hamish's worst fear. He looked almost exactly like Hamish. Then suddenly, George felt guilty. Hamish had been abused as a child as well.

But that was no excuse to hurt a child! So George didn't stop the boggart, instead, set the timer for it to dissolve fifteen seconds earlier.

George turned of his magical monitor, since Hamish was nearly done playing. Now, all that was left was one thing.

Once Hamish's fifteen seconds was over, he fainted. When he woke up again, he remembered the dream vividly. He remembered it very well and wondered why Hope had been there. For he didn't feel guilty for what he did to Hope.

A sharp pain shot through him and he yelled in surprise. What was that? It had something to do with Hope's freakishness.

Another sharp pain. It took almost fifty sharp pains to realise it happened when he thought about Hope. This though resulted to another sharp pain. What he didn't know what that he would feel a sharp pain when he thought of Hope for the rest of his life.

When George had left, he missed a very important part though.

Charlie finally finished his computer game. He stretched out on his bed, ready for a good night sleep, only after playing on his phone. He was completely oblivious to what was going on downstairs.

"You ungrateful freak!" Hamish yelled.

Charlie sighed. Hope must be back home again. Charlie decided to go downstairs later. Hamish must be beating Hope up hard since he didn't hear anymore yelling after Hamish stopped yelling. What he didn't know was the George made sure that "Hope" could only be heard by Hamish.

Suddenly, Charlie craved sweets. He saw the sweets that George guy gave him and grabbed one. He piped in into his mouth. Not bad.

Suddenly, he felt something in his mouth. He stood in front of his mirror and screamed. His tongue was enlarging. Unknown to him, many years ago, when Fred and George, the creators of the sweet, was fourteen, they first tested it out on Charlie's Dursley counterpart.

* * *

 **Hey guys, sorry for the late update. Also, sorry for the not-so-good chapter.**


	12. Drunken Men

After getting revenge on Hamish, George headed home. He went to the Burrow first to pick up Hope. Hope seemed to have really warmed up to Mrs Weasley and was reluctant to leave.

Mrs Weasley was reluctant to let her go as well, so George promised, "You will see her again tomorrow. And maybe you can take care of her when I'm at work,"

'That's a great idea," Mrs Weasley said.

When George floo-ed home, he asked Hope, "How was your day with your grandma?"

"It was okay," Hope was looking at George with worry.

"What's wrong?" George asked.

"When you cover someone's ears, you don't really block out the sound," Hope said softly.

George took a while to understand. Before he said anything, Hope said, "Sorry,"

George ignored the apology and said, "Don't worry about that, okay Hope?"

"Did you hurt him?" Hope asked.

"No, of course not! I just wanted some answers to some questions. I didn't hurt him in anyway," _Except for punching him._ _And mentally scarring him._

Hope sighed in relief. Then she started talking abut her day with Mrs Wealeys. George just smiled and listened to her.

That night, George couldn't resist opening up a bottle of firewhiskey and drinking. It had been an innocent question Hope had asked really, but it hurt so much.

 _"How did dad die?"_ Hope had asked. Why did she have to ask that! George could remember it vividly, the ghost of a smile still on Fred's face as he died. Merlin, it hurt so much!

He took the bottle and threw it a the wall, again. He should stop doing that, since the bottle had been almost completely full and stained the damn carpet. He didn't feel like cleaning it up.

He was so caught up in his agony that he didn't hear a small whimper and then the opening of the front door.

Hope knew she had hurt Uncle George from the look on his face. She had asked how her dad had died. She had been so stupid! Uncle George still wasn't over his brother's death.

She decided to apologise. She went downstairs and saw Uncle George on the sofa, drinking something. She hoped he wasn't drinking that alcho-thing that made Hamish go bad. But it was Uncle George, he didn't drink that.

But he did. Uncle George threw the bottle to the wall. Hope whimpered, she remembered a memory from not to long ago.

 _*Flashback*_

 _"Get me another beer you freak!" Hamish shouted._

 _Hope had no idea what a beer was. She has no idea what Hamish wanted so she froze. Hamish didn't like that. He lunged at Hope. Hope cried out in pain as he hit her._

 _"I said get me a beer! Can't you understand that one simple instruction!" Hamish slurred. He took his present bottle and threw it, the bottle shattering just above Hope's head._

 _*End of Flashback*_

Hope hadn't been able to escape that time but she would manage to escape now. She ran out the front door. She just kept on running and running until her legs gave out and she fell onto the pavement, sobbing.

For hours, she just sat there, wondering where to go and what to do. Suddenly, she head an unfamiliar voice slur from behind her, "Well, well, well, what is such a pretty little thing like you doing all the way out here?"

Hope turned to see two old men making their way towards her. She tried to run but one of them grabbed her arm.

"You, little one, would make a lot of money," The man reached to stroke her cheek.

Hope bit the man's hand, "Let me go!"

The man slapped her face, hard, and then pulled her up by the hair. She screamed the first thing that came to her mind, "Uncle George!"

"Your Uncle can't find you where we're taking you," the other man said.

Hope screamed and screamed but couldn't do anything as described was dragged away by the man. Her only hope left was her Uncle George.

* * *

 **Hello all. Sorry for the late update and also, we're getting close to the end! I'm kind of excited, and kind of not at the same time...**

 **Some of you asked if Charlie would have magical abilities, and I think that he may as well. However, I don't believe Hamish would treat him as badly as he treated Hope. The reason I think so is that Hamish actually does love Charlie, but didn't like Hope because he was not his daughter. It's kind of like if Dudley was a wizard - Petunia and Vernon probably wouldn't treat him like Harry because they loved their son.**


	13. Away and Back

George woke up two hours later from a nightmare. He hadn't drunk much that night, thank goodness. He woke up and went to check on Hope, as the nightmare had been about her.

Hope's room was empty. George started to panic as he looked around the house. No Hope. George checked the front door. It was unlocked. Hope had run away!

George was immediately outside, not even bothering to grab his coat. He took out his wand and made it point towards where Hope was and started running. He pushed himself to his limits, and he was very unfit, since most wizards don't bother exercising.

"Uncle George," George swore he heard Hope scream.

Another voice said something George couldn't hear. George started running faster towards the voices. Finally, he reached a deserted alleyway. The wand pointed towards a door, which was probably the entrance to a run down❔ apartment

George quickly barged in and followed his wand up the stairs. He was led towards a door which George quickly blasted open. He didn't care that a muggle saw this, he only wanted Hope back.

There were two men in the apartment. One was passed out while the other was lost in thought. "Where's Hope!" George shouted at the still conscious man.

The man pointed a shaky finger towards a rotting door with rusting hinges. George quickly kicked the door down. Much to his relief, inside was Hope, but she was laying on the cold floor, unconscious.

"What did you do to her!" George shouted.

"Gave her what she deserved. She bit me, so I beat her, and she went limp when I hit her head," the man slurred.

George produced his wand at the now laughing man. He threw the man against the was and effectively broke it. Good. Maybe the man will feel the pain once he wakes up.

George turned his attention back on Hope. He gently picked her up and apparated back home. He quickly lay Hope down on the sofa and did a few healing spells he learned. Hope only had a few bruises, and her head would hurt once she woke up, but that was all. Thank Merlin. George would have killed himself if anything happened to her, not because she was Fred's child, and Katie's too, but because George really did love Hope.

* * *

It wasn't until dawn that Hope started stirring. George was by her bedside immediately, holding her hand. Hope mumbled something and opens her eyes. She was frightened, obviously.

"Hope! I'm so glad you're okay!" George said happily, then gravely said, "How much do you remember?"

"I remember running away, and then two men found me and I bit one so he started hurting me," Hope said on the verge of tears.

"Why did you run away in the first place?" George asked in the first place.

Hope didn't whimpered, "I was scared,"

"Of what?"

"You," Hope mumbled.

That hit George like a hundred bludgers, "Why?"

Hope looked away, "Nothing,"

"Hope, you've never been sacred of me before, than why now?"

"You where drinking the alcho-thing," Hope said.

George smiled a little at _alcho-thing_. "Hope, if I promise not to drink, will you promise not to do anything stupid like this again?"

Hope looked at him, wide eyed, "You would do that for me?"

"I would," George said firmly.

"But why?"

"Because I love you," George said, smiling.

Hope looked at him for a long time before bursting into tears. "I love you too," she managed to say. George just held her close and whispered soothing nonsense to her, hiding his own tear streaked face in her hair.

"So, do you promise not to run away again, because I already promised not to drink,"

"I promise,"

Hope fell asleep after that, her six year old self exhausted. George smiled as he tucked her into bed and mentally thanked her. George didn't need help, Hope was what George had really needed all along.

* * *

 **Was that cheesy? It may have been. As you can see, I'm almost at the end. Trouble is, I was running out of ideas, so I had to end it.**


	14. Angelina

"Hey George," Angelina said.

"Oh, hey Angel," George said, putting away a few boxes, knowing she hated that name.

"Don't call me that!" Angelina snapped, then said, "Where have you been? You haven't been to work the last few days,"

"Oh yeah, I just got Hope settled in," George said.

"How is she? Not any trouble, I bet," Angelina said.

"She's fine, although she pulled a little stunt a few weeks ago," George said.

"What happened?" Angelina asked.

George told Angelina of Hope's little adventure a few days ago. Angelina had looked very, very worried about Hope throughout the stories, and George knew it was genuine. Angelina and Katie had been very close.

"I was wondering," Angelina said slowly, "I wanted to get to know Hope, maybe over a meal or something,"

"Yeah, that would be nice, maybe tomorrow night? Nothing formal," George asked, knowing she had wanted to spend time with Hope _and_ him. He blushed a little at the thought.

Angelina brightened, "That would be great! Thanks,"

"Yeah, no problem. She's Katie's child too," George said.

George would never, _ever_ admit it, but he was nervous about the night. Hope had been very happy to meet Angelina and George kept reminding himself it was about _her_ and it wasn't any sort of date or anything.

The floo flared and George was immediately there to greet Angelina. "Hey!"

"Hi!" She replied, smiling, "Where Hope,"

"Hi," Hope said shyly, hiding behind George's leg.

"Hello Hope, I heard you gave George a lot of trouble," Angelina grinned, "Good job,"

Hope giggled and asked in the most innocent voice she could, "Are you Uncle George's girlfriend?"

Angelina looked at George, who was blushing and said, "No,"

"Not yet," Hope said cheekily.

"That's the side of Fred showing," George said, slightly proud, "Cheeky brat,"

Hope giggled. George smiled at that. He was happy that Hope felt comfortable around Angelina. Angelina watched the two of them happily. They were both healing, slowly but surely.

Angelina sighed, "Another Weasley in making, and another Gryffindor too!"

Hope beamed as she saw George smile proudly. Then she turned to Angelina and said, "Well, Uncle George and you would make a cute couple,"

George's smile dropped and her flushed. Angelina blushed too and smiled at Hope. Geroge quickly said, "Hope, go play upstairs and leave us adults to talk,"

Hope giggled and ran upstairs, perfectly content with playing by herself.

"She's much better than I first saw her, much open too," Angelina said, making herself comfortable.

"She's getting cheekier by the day," George grinned.

Angelina laughed, "She is her fathers daughter then!"

For some reason, the mention of Fred didn't hurt that much anymore. He didn't ponder on it, as Angelina continued. The evening was spent with laughter and enjoyment, especially when Hope and Angelina started talking. Angelina found that Hope was just as much like Katie as she was like Fred. A bit of both really.

As she left, she couldn't help but grin so wide that she felt as if her face would tear apart. George was healing, and he was healing fast. Hope brought happiness in his life. Hope had been what he was missing before.

* * *

 **Getting really close to the end! Only the epilouge today, which will be later today.**


	15. Epilogue

**Hello everyone! Here's the epilogue and the last part of the book. Hopefully it's good. I'd like to say THANK YOU for sticking with this book until the very end!**

* * *

"Hello George dear!" Mrs Weasley exclaimed from the fireplace.

"Hi mum!" George said.

"How's the family?" Mrs Weasley asked.

"They're all fine. I was about to go to work though," George said.

"That's fine. Just one thing. I was wondering, since Hope will be going to Hogwarts in two days time, perhaps we should celebrate!"

George grinned, "Am I invited, or is it just Hope?" Geroge joked.

Mrs Weasley laughed, "Only if you behave,"

"That's impossible! As if Uncle _George_ could behave!" Hope laughed, coming in to the room.

"I can _so_ behave!" George pouted. The girls laughed at his antics. "Anyway, of course we can come. When?"

"Dinner?"

"Thanks mum!" George said.

"Say hi to the others for me," Mrs Weasley smiled.

George pulled his head out of the fireplace. "Going to work, tell you Aunt, 'kay?"

"Sure," Hope chipped happily.

"Fred!" An eight year old girl shouted.

"I did nothing Roxanne," the guilty voice of the girl's twin shouted.

George chuckled and Hope groaned, "They're at it again!" They said in unison.

George left the chaos of his home behind and _floo_ ed to even more chaos.

"Hey George!" Ron shouted from under a pile of jokes.

"Hello little Ronnie. Er...watcha doing under there?"

"Um, well, I er...I need to talk to you about something,"

"Sure, what?"

Ron took a deep breath and said, "Well, I got an internship at this Auror thing and I..."

"You'll make a great Auror," George grinned, he then added slyly, "Hopefully,"

Ron laughed in relief. Then he stopped, "What do you mean 'hopefully'?"

Now it was George's turn to laugh. He just walked away, keeping Ron in the dark. Ron followed him like a lost puppy, "George? George...what did you mean? George? Come on, don't ignore me! George!"

"Hey Angelina!" George greeted his lovely wife.

"Sup George!" Angelina greeted, then shouted, "Fred, Roxanne!"

Two guilty twins looked up from experimenting with their own pranks. George laughed and ruffled both their hairs, winking at them.

"Honestly, George, you mustn't encourage them!" Angelina scolded playfully.

"I can't help it!" George thrust his hands up in surrender.

Angelina laughed and shook her head. George looked around and asked, "Where's Hope?"

"I sent her ahead," Angelina said.

"Sure thing. We should get going too. Come one kids, Angel," George said.

"Agh! Still George. Still calling me Angel?" Angelina said in mock-anger.

"You're my angel, so yeah," George winked.

Angelina growled and muttered something that sounded like, "Stupid sappy Weasleys you can't stay mad at".

George laughed and stepped through the fireplace. He was greeted by all his brothers and sister, along with their wives and husband, and children. Charlie was still single though.

Suddenly, once everyone had stepped through, there was glitter everywhere. George took a moment to realise he had been prank ed again.

"Hope Weasley!" Mrs Weasley shouted.

"Yes?" Hope asked innocently.

"Another prank Hope? Really?" Angelina asked, trying to keep a stern face.

"But Aunt Angel, Granny, I'm off to Hogwarts in two days," Hope fake cried, "You can't punish me now! How will you feel if the last thing you ever did to me was punish me for a harmless prank?"

George joined her, "Yeah mum, you can't! How will dear Hope feel! She'll feel hopeless, no pun intended!"

Mrs Weasley couldn't stay mad at that, she burst out laughing. Everyone followed and soon, the Burrow was, like usual, full of laughter and joy - just like it had been, before the war.

As the evening went on, the joy just kept growing. George eyed Hope with pleasure and pride. Ever since Fred died, he had been broken, and so had the family. Ever since Hope, the family found...hope. George wondered if Katie had known this and named Hope because of it. Did she have seer blood?

Finally, at dinner time, everyone was laughing. Mrs Weasley, so caught up in the joy, forgot again.

"Fred, can you pass me the..." She paled, remember once again there was no Fred. She froze. Everyone froze, expecting a break down from George.

George remembered. It didn't hurt anymore to remember Fred. A sense of nostalgia taking over. He remember a memory so very clearly. It was third year at platform 9 and 3/4. He remembered Fred's words clearly. George decided that he wouldn't breakdown, not this time. Fred wouldn't want it. If Fred were here, he and George would have made a joke to lighten the tension.

"I'm George," George said gently, smiling, "Honestly woman, do you call yourself out mother?"

* * *

 _ **Mischief Managed**_


End file.
